Kiffin: It was Russell all along

InsideBayArea: So if the Raiders were so intent on taking JaMarcus Russell, why all the drama?

“We were just making you guys wait,” Raiders coach Lane Kiffin said Saturday morning at his first press briefing about a half-hour after his club selected the LSU quarterback with the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft. “It would have been too easy to pick right away. We’ve got to keep the spotlight for a few minutes.”

To hear Kiffin tell it, Russell was going to be a Raider long ago. Which is what he is supposed to say, of course. Draft days are all about a unified front.

As much as anything Russell said to the Raiders during their meetings, it was how those around him responded to the quarterback that helped make the difference.

Kiffin said there was no timetable as to when Russell would play.

“It might be from Day 1, it might be in Year 2,” Kiffin said. “Matt Leinart had never thrown a pass in college and won a national championship in his first year. There are all kinds of different scenarios.”

As for Randy Moss, Kiffin confirmed the Raiders are listening to trade offers, suggested the receiver could still be on the team at the end of the day, then turned the talk back to Russell.